Un-Romanticizing the American West: White Frontier Women's Daily Lives, 1860-1900

Abstract

The goal of this research paper is to give a realistic picture of women's life on the frontier. Popular culture, including books, folk tales, and movies, have placed stereotypes on the Western trailblazers. Aside from the Mae West prostitute and the renegade cowgirl Annie Oakley, common women on the frontier have been largely ignored by history. Far from being a romanticized "Little House on the Prairie," the realism was one of poverty, subsistence living, and danger. This paper will examine the experiences of white women on the frontier and analyze homesteading, daily domestic activities, and family life, as well as the various roles women portrayed. After discussing the themes, the conclusion must be drawn that through all the perils, women persevered, and together with their next generation of hard working women, fought for recognition and respect. These women did not live wondrous lives, but ones of work, sweat, and tears and they should be honored and understood, not stereotyped or romanticized.